cool things I found while catching up on my Google reader

NYT on the (re)new(ed) movement to document rare and endangered languages. Lingistic enthusiasts, you'll love this--who knew there may be as many as 800 languages spoken in New York, including languages that are no longer spoken anywhere else in the world? (via Ellen W)

The 100 best Arabic books (in English), according to the Arab Writers Union. I'm 0 for 100. Clearly this is a language whose translations I need to explore more. (via Lit Saloon)

15 comments:

Well, now I'm entertained. :) I always have to goof off and look at random things before I get down to daily work, and this was an excellent way to start. I loved those pictures from the first link. :) Thank you for posting these!

Mysteries for the non-mysteriously inclined: Jasper Fforde's Nursery Crimes series, in which Detective Inspector Jack Spratt investigates crimes against the citizens of Reading. Two books so far, The Big Over Easy (what REALLY happened to Humpty Dumpty?) and The Fourth Bear (gee, what could THAT be about). If it all sounds gimmicky and a little... well... precious, that's because you don't know how clever and what a good writer JF can be.

A summary of TBOE, from Fforde's own site: "'It looks like he died from injuries sustained during a fall...' Bestselling author Jasper Fforde begins an effervescent new series. It's Easter in Reading -- a bad time for eggs -- and no one can remember the last sunny day. Humpty Dumpty, well-known nursery favourite, large egg, ex-convict and former millionaire philanthropist is found shattered beneath a wall in a shabby area of town. Following the pathologist's careful reconstruction of Humpty's shell, Detective Inspector Jack Spratt and his Sergeant Mary Mary are soon grappling with a sinister plot involving cross-border money laundering, the illegal Bearnaise sauce market, corporate politics and the cut and thrust world of international Chiropody. As Jack and Mary stumble around the streets of Reading in Jack's Lime Green Austin Allegro, the clues pile up, but Jack has his own problems to deal with. And on top of everything else, the JellyMan is coming to town..."

You definitely don't have to like mysteries. But if you've got no sense of humor (especially for wordplay), you should keep looking.

As a former linguistics major and current ling-geek, I totally went ahead and e-mailed the Endangered Language Alliance (people in the article) to see if they needed volunteers.

And they do! Or will. I was told they're going to have a meeting in the beginning of June, so if anyone else is similarly inclined to give their time to that project, they should totally get in contact with them: http://www.endangeredlanguagealliance.org/ :)

As a linguist, I'd like to add that there are frequently interesting languages or language dialects around you that you aren't noticing. "You" being the generic you. One way to support them is to resist monolingual drives. Yes, there is a valid reason for all of "us" to be able to communicate, but the majority of the world is bilingual and we can be too. You may donate resources. If you hear of a linguistically-related cultural activity, you can take the time to go watch and leave $5 in a box somewhere. Sometimes there are community centers that could use something as simple as markers to allow a child speaker of the language to draw and tell a story. These little things add up.